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Pension & Benefits Daily™ covers all major legislative, regulatory, legal, and industry developments in the area of employee benefits every business day, focusing on actions by Congress,...

A plan administrator's decision denying a participant's claim for disability
benefits based on a suspected disqualifying pre-existing condition and the
participant's failure to provide requested documentation was not an abuse of
discretion, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi ruled Aug. 3 (Scott v. Hartford Life and Accident Insurance
Co., S.D. Miss., No. 2:10-cv-00220-KS -MTP, 8/3/12).

The plan administrator requested additional medical evidence after the
participant's medical records indicated that the participant's injuries were
related to a pre-existing condition.

Judge Keith Starrett determined that the administrative record supported the
plan administrator's decision to request additional medical records and
concluded its benefit denial was not unreasonable after the participant failed
to provide the records.

Dispute Over Disability Benefits Claim.

Tonya Scott worked for the Hattiesburg Clinic from March 10, 2007, through
June 6, 2007, and participated in its Employee Retirement Income Security
Act-governed group long-term disability plan, which was insured by Hartford Life
and Accident Insurance Co.

Scott suffered a slip-and-fall injury in April 2007 and began experiencing
lower back pain. Scott was treated by a doctor for the injury and continued
seeking medical care. Scott allegedly filed a disability claim with Hartford and
sued in Mississippi state court in April 2010 after Hartford failed to
respond.

Hartford removed the suit to federal court in September 2010 based on ERISA
preemption. Hartford then filed a motion for summary judgment in June 2011 and
argued that Scott had failed to exhaust her administrative remedies because she
did not file a benefit claim until June 2010.

The court granted a motion to stay in August 2011 to allow Hartford time to
evaluate Scott's disability claim. The stay was lifted in November 2011 after
Hartford denied Scott's claim. Another stay was granted in January 2012 after
Scott filed an administrative appeal. Hartford upheld its decision in April 2012
and filed another motion for summary judgment.

Participant Failed to Provide Records.

The court noted that Hartford had sole discretionary authority to interpret
the plan's terms and to determine Scott's benefit eligibility. Additionally, the
plan excluded coverage for pre-existing conditions, which were defined as “a
condition for which medical treatment or advice was rendered, prescribed or
recommended within 3 months prior to [Scott's] effective date of insurance,” the
court said.

The court noted that Hartford's investigation into Scott's disability claim
“produced medical records which prompted [Hartford] to inquire whether her
disability” was caused by a preexisting condition. According to the court,
medical documentation from two physicians indicated that Scott's fall at the
Hattiesburg Clinic caused her lower back pain, in addition to “congenital
problems” and “pre-existing spondylolysis.”

Hartford asked Scott to submit additional medical records as a result of the
physician statements, the court said. According to the court, Hartford denied
Scott's disability benefit claim after she failed to provide the requested
documentation. Scott argued that she submitted evidence “that she [was]
disabled, that she does not have a pre-existing condition, that her injury was
work-related, and that no reasonable person would have demanded further
information.”

The court determined that Scott's alleged disability was irrelevant because
Hartford based its benefit denial on Scott's “failure to provide information
regarding the alleged pre-existing condition.” The court, quoting Holland v.
International Paper Co. Retirement Plan, 576 F.3d 240, 47 EBC 2753 (5th Cir.
2009) (136 PBD, 7/20/09; 36 BPR 1721, 7/21/09), concluded that the “pertinent
issue” was whether Hartford's “decision to request further information and to
deny coverage for [Scott's] failure to provide it were 'made without a rational
connection' to the known facts.”

According to the court, “the Administrative Record contain[ed] evidence
supporting [Hartford's] denial” and “it was reasonable for [Hartford] to seek
further information from [Scott] as to whether she had received medical
treatment during the three months prior to the policy's effective date.”
Hartford “did not abuse its discretion by denying [Scott's] claim for benefits”
after Scott failed to submit the requested medical records, the court said.

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